Official Houdini Commemorative Postage Stamp

The U.S. Postal Service honored Houdini with a special postage stamp, issued on July 3, 2002.And the stamp does a trick!

After many years of lobbying by members of the magical fraternities, the U.S. Postal Service issued a commemorative postage stamp featuring the image of Harry Houdini. The 37-cent stamp was available at all U.S. post offices for several weeks in 2002.

The "First Day Ceremony" was held at the Society of American Magicians 100th Anniversary Convention in New York City. Houdini was president of the S.A.M. for nine years until his death in 1926, and the S.A.M. seal is on his gravestone.

What makes this stamp really different is that it actually does a trick! The stamp is designed to reveal a hidden image when seen through a special UV viewer. In normal light, the stamp shows the colorful image of a youthful Houdini. Under the viewer, Houdini's image is shackled in chains. Viewed in normal light again, the chains vanish!

Several cachets (First Day mountings) were offered for sale at the time. One was offered by the Blood family, relatives of Houdini, while another was offered by the Society of American Magicians. Of course, the USPS also offered the official cachet for sale. These cachets can still be found on the secondary market.